Bangladesh call up two uncapped players for second Test against England

Bangladesh suffered a narrow 22-run defeat in the first Test at Chittagong

Bangladesh have called up Mosaddek Hossain and Subashis Roy for the second Test against England at Dhaka. Both players are yet to make their debuts in the longest format and will provide additional options for the hosts. Fast bowler Shafiul Islam who had played in the opening match at Chittagong has been rested after he complained of tiredness emanating from participating in a Test after almost two years.

However, the bigger concern for the home team will be Sabbir Rahman’s reported illness. The 24-year old made quite an impressive debut in the first Test by remaining unbeaten on 64 during Bangladesh’s narrow defeat. With spin-friendly pitches narrowing the gap between the two sides, the second match could turn out to be a fascinating affair as Mushfiqur Rahim’s troops will be eager to go one step further in their progress at the Test level.

Chief Selector Minhazul Abedin revealed, “We have rested Shafiul because he got really tired playing his first Test in a long time. We have called up (Mosaddek Hossain) Saikat as cover for Sabbir who got sick in Chittagong.”

Mosaddek is one of the most promising batsmen in the domestic circuit with 1985 runs from 18 first-class matches at an astounding average of 70.89. Aside from scoring seven centuries and six fifties, the 20-year old has also picked up 16 wickets thus presenting a part-time option for Rahim. The right-hander made his ODI debut against Afghanistan last month and displayed his value with scores of 29, 38* in the last couple of ODIs against England whilst picking up a wicket each in those two games.

On the other hand, Subashis is a right-arm medium pacer with considerable experience at the first-class level. Although he has not represented his country in any format, the 27-year old will hope to draw from his decent domestic record which reads – 136 wickets from 51 matches at an average of 28.27 and strike-rate of 55.1 including seven four-wicket hauls as well as two five-wicket hauls.

Upon losing a vital toss, Bangladesh pushed England particularly close by putting in an improved performance in the first Test. 18-year old off-spinning all rounder Mehedi Hasan shone on debut with a six-wicket haul in the first innings. Even though the match resulted in a 22-run defeat for them, they will be hoping to end on the other side of the line when the second Test starts on the 28th.